Man survives nearly 3 days underwater in an air pocket

Story highlights

Nigerian Harrison Okene's remarkable story of survival highlights that

He survived 60 hours in a tiny air bubble, where he'd taken shelter last year

As rescuers take on the daunting task of finding survivors, family members of the missing passengers are pinning slim hopes on floundering air pockets in the capsized South Korean ferry.

They know the odds aren't in their favor, particularly after the entire ferry went underwater Friday. But they point to one especially miraculous tale of survival for their reason for not giving up.

In May 2013, a tug boat carrying a 12-person crew capsized off the coast of Nigeria. Two divers sent to recover the bodies assumed everyone aboard had died. After all, the boat was about 100 feet down under the Atlantic Ocean.

Three days had passed. And when a diver reached for a hand he thought belonged to a corpse, he discovered it was Harrison Okene, the boat's cook.

Okene had survived 60 hours in a 4-foot space -- a tiny air bubble -- where he'd taken shelter.

Just Watched

Staying alive in a sunken ship

South Korean ferry sinks – Sewol ferry captain Lee Joon-Seok was acquitted of murder, avoiding a death sentence, but was sentenced to 36 years in jail on November 11 for his role in the maritime disaster that killed more than 300.

Hide Caption

1 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – Shoes believed to belong to the missing and the deceased are on display at the harbor.

Hide Caption

2 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – Jindo harbor, where the search operation is based, has become a memorial for those who lost their lives. Yellow ribbons and photos are displayed as people come to pay their respects.

Hide Caption

3 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – A joint government-civilian task force is still looking for the missing, but winter is fast approaching.

Hide Caption

4 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – Ten are still missing from tragic ferry sinking last April, which killed more than 300. Six months later, families are still waiting for their loved ones to be found. The parents of 16-year-old Huh Da-yoon, pictured, are among them.

Hide Caption

5 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – The families of the ten who remain missing have been waiting in Jindo Indoor Gymnasium since the first day. Families can watch search mission in real time on a large monitor in the gym.

Hide Caption

6 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – South Korean President Park Geun-hye weeps while delivering a speech to the nation about the sunken ferry Sewol at the presidential Blue House in Seoul, South Korea, on Monday, May 19. More than 200 bodies have been found and nearly 100 people remain missing after the ferry sank April 16 off South Korea's southwest coast.

Hide Caption

7 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – Police in Seoul detain a protester during a march Saturday, May 17, for victims of the Sewol.

Hide Caption

8 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – A girl in Seoul holds a candle during a service paying tribute to the victims of the Sewol on Wednesday, April 30.

Hide Caption

9 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – People pay tribute to victims at a memorial altar in Ansan, South Korea, on Tuesday, April 29.

Hide Caption

10 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – A police officer holds an umbrella for a relative of a missing ferry passenger Monday, April 28, in Jindo, South Korea.

Hide Caption

11 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – South Korean Buddhists carry lanterns in a parade in Seoul on Saturday, April 26, to honor the memory of the dead and the safe return of the missing.

Hide Caption

12 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – Divers search for people in the waters near Jindo on April 26.

Hide Caption

13 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – People in Ansan attend a memorial for the victims on April 26.

Hide Caption

14 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – A diver jumps into the sea near the sunken ferry on Friday, April 25.

Hide Caption

15 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – A relative of a passenger weeps while waiting for news of his missing loved one at a port in Jindo on April 25.

Hide Caption

16 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – People attend a memorial for the victims at the Olympic Memorial Hall in Ansan on Thursday, April 24.

Hide Caption

17 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – Yellow ribbons honoring the victims flap in the wind as a hearse carrying a victim's body leaves Danwon High School in Ansan on April 24. Most of the people on board the ferry were high school students on their way to the resort island of Jeju.

Hide Caption

18 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – People attend a memorial for the victims at Olympic Memorial Hall in Ansan.

Hide Caption

19 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – Search personnel dive into the sea on Wednesday, April 23.

Hide Caption

20 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – Flares light up the search area on Tuesday, April 22.

Hide Caption

21 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – The sun sets over the site of the sunken ferry on April 22.

Hide Caption

22 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – A relative of a ferry passenger prays as she waits for news in Jindo on April 22.

Hide Caption

23 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – The search for victims continues April 22 in the waters of the Yellow Sea.

Hide Caption

24 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – Rescue workers in Jindo carry the body of a passenger on Monday, April 21.

Hide Caption

25 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – Divers jump into the water on April 21 to search for passengers near the buoys that mark the site of the sunken ferry.

Hide Caption

26 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – Search operations continue as flares illuminate the scene near Jindo on Sunday, April 20.

South Korean ferry sinks – Relatives of passengers look out at the sea from Jindo on April 20.

Hide Caption

29 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – Police officers in Jindo stand guard Saturday, April 19, to prevent relatives of the ferry's missing passengers from jumping in the water. Some relatives said they will swim to the shipwreck site and find their missing family members by themselves.

Hide Caption

30 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – Family members of missing passengers hug as they await news of their missing relatives at Jindo Gymnasium on April 19.

Hide Caption

31 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – South Korean Navy Ship Salvage Unit members prepare to salvage the sunken ferry and search for missing people on April 19.

Hide Caption

32 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – Lee Joon Suk, the captain of the Sewol, is escorted to the court that issued his arrest warrant Friday, April 18, in Mokpo, South Korea.

Hide Caption

33 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – A woman cries as she waits for news on missing passengers April 18 in Jindo.

Hide Caption

34 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – A searchlight illuminates the capsized ferry on Thursday, April 17.

Hide Caption

35 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – A woman cries during a candlelight vigil at Danwon High School in Ansan, South Korea, on April 17.

Hide Caption

36 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – Family members of passengers aboard the sunken ferry gather at a gymnasium in Jindo on April 17.

Hide Caption

37 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – The body of a victim is moved at a hospital in Mokpo on April 17.

Hide Caption

38 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – Relatives of a passenger cry at a port in Jindo on April 17 as they wait for news on the rescue operation.

Hide Caption

39 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – South Korean coast guard members and rescue teams search for passengers at the site of the sunken ferry on April 17.

Hide Caption

40 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – A relative of a passenger cries as she waits for news on Wednesday, April 16.

Hide Caption

41 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – Relatives check a list of survivors April 16 in Jindo.

Hide Caption

42 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – Rescue crews attempt to save passengers from the ferry on April 16.

Hide Caption

43 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – A relative waits for a missing loved one at the port in Jindo.

Hide Caption

44 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – Parents at Danwon High School search for names of their children among the list of survivors. Ansan is a suburb of Seoul, the South Korean capital.

Hide Caption

45 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – Helicopters hover over the ferry as rescue operations continue April 16.

South Korean ferry sinks – A passenger is helped onto a rescue boat on April 16.

Hide Caption

48 of 49

Photos: South Korean ferry sinks49 photos

South Korean ferry sinks – A passenger is rescued from the sinking ship on April 16.

Hide Caption

49 of 49

EXPAND GALLERY

"The rest of my life is not enough to thank God for this wonder, it is incredible," he told a local newspaper at the time.

Some have also pointed to the Italian cruise ship Costa Concordia, which ran aground and capsized in January 2012, killing dozens. Some survivors were pulled out after being trapped inside the ship for more than 30 hours.

In the case of the Costa Concordia, the cruise ship was not fully submerged. Sewol is.

As for air pockets, also known as "voids," they could provide those on board with a chance of survival, said maritime expert Kim Petersen said.

"It's difficult to say since we don't know the cause of the vessel sinking," he said. "If it had been because of a problem with one of the vehicle doors, of course that could cause massive flooding very quickly and reduce the likelihood of voids.

"But the fact is that this is a vessel that is almost 500 feet in length and it's sitting in waters that we believe to be between 70 and 110 feet deep, so there is the strong possibility that there are voids and the possibility of survivors."

Outrage grows after ferry sinks

Just Watched

Ferry tragedy: Mother haunted by decision

"The problem now is getting divers down into those areas and bringing those people to the surface," he said.

Divers must contend with fierce winds and rough waters.

"There are heavy currents in the area. So the vessel itself is not stable in the water. So you are, by default, putting divers at risk," U.S. Navy Capt. Heidi Agle told CNN's Wolf Blitzer. The U.S. Navy is assisting with the South Korean search.

The frigid waters

Then, there's the temperature.

The water is a frigid 50 F (10 C). At that temperature, exhaustion sets in within one to two hours. And the expected survival time is no more than six hours, CNN meteorologist Samantha Mohr said.

Still, rescue teams continued to pump air into the hull of the submerged ship Friday. Like the family members, they aren't ready to give up yet.